Dajah Ponder: Global Health

  The next country is Indonesia, which joined the United Nations on September 28, 1950. Indonesia is located off the coast of mainland Southeast Asia between the Indian and Pacific Ocean. Indonesia faces many challenges in addressing water and sanitation across its many islands. For instance, population growth, urbanization, and expanding agriculture play a role in the availability of water resources and systems. Many cities and districts within Indonesia have an insufficient budget to manage water and sanitation infrastructure and expand access to poor communities. Because of this, 63% of Indonesians in the poorest wealth quintile don’t have access to safe drinking water, and 34% don’t have access to improved sanitation (USAID, Indonesia). Lack of clean water and sanitation can cause diarrheal diseases, which causes mortality for children under five years of age. Currently, the United States Agency for International Development supports Indonesia for the goal of clean water and sa...

  The next country I will be focusing on is Haiti, which joined the United Nations on October 24, 1945. Haiti is a country with many issues and challenges; however, one of the main challenges is having access to sustainable water and sanitation. Limited water and sanitation services and poor hygiene practices can result in high levels of diarrheal disease and malnutrition throughout Haiti. Also, this issue has contributed to the spread of the cholera epidemic that began in Haiti in October 2010, resulting in more than 9,000 deaths (Globalwaters). Furthermore, the total population in Haiti is eleven million people; however, sixty-five percent of Haitians have access to basic water sources, and thirty-five percent of Haitians have access to basic sanitation. The main challenges in achieving sustainable water and sanitation are limited government capacity, lower user demand for improved water and sanitation services, lack of finances, and geographic vulnerability to natural disaster...

  The next country I will be focusing on is Nepal, which joined the United Nations on December 14, 1955. Nepal is a country with many ongoing issues; however, one of the main concerns is having access to clean water and sanitation. Contaminated water and poor sanitation can cause people to have waterborne and diarrheal diseases; therefore, it is important that we bring global attention to the issues of water quality and sanitation. Furthermore, “ 10.8 million people in Nepal do have access to improved sanitation, and 3.5 million do not have access to basic water services.” (UNICEF Nepal). However, Nepal has made tremendous progress in expanding access to water and sanitation in the past few decades despite some challenges. Currently, WaterAid Nepal is working in collaboration with local partners, governments, and communities to support the delivery of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) services in poor communities. One of their goals is to enable marginalized communities and i...